Lee Ranaldo | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Lee Ranaldo is best known as one of the co-founders of the iconic noise-rock group Sonic Youth, and his work helped bridge the gaps between experimental music and New Yorks no-wave scene with the larger world of alternative rock. Along with bandmate Thurston Moore, Ranaldo was responsible for creating a new approach to the electric guitar with their unique tunings and percussive playing style; beyond his wall of noise Ranaldo lent an atmospheric, vaguely psychedelic undertow to their music on tracks like "Erics Trip," "Rain King," and "Pipeline/Kill Time." During his years with Sonic Youth, Ranaldo used his solo releases as a platform for his more personal and introspective music, such as his 1997 effort Amarillo Rand (For Robert Smithson), 1993s Scriptures of the Golden Eternity, and his improvisational collaborations with percussionist William Hooker. After Sonic Youth went on an indefinite hiatus in 2011, Ranaldos albums began to combine the free forms of his earlier work with the more rock-oriented flavor of the songs he brought to Sonic Youth, as documented on projects like 2012s Between the Times and the Tides and 2013s Last Night on Earth. Lee Ranaldo was born in 1956 in East Norwich, New York. Ranaldo attended SUNY Binghamton in Binghamton, New York, where he played in an experimental punk outfit called the Fluks (named after the Dadaist art movement Fluxus). His early influences include many psychedelic California bands from the late 60s, including the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, and Hot Tuna, as well as early New York City punk units like the Ramones, Television, and Talking Heads. After moving to New York City in 1979, Ranaldo briefly attempted to revive the Fluks before performing with a series of acts including Rhys Chatham and Plus Instruments (with whom he recorded an LP in 1982). Through Chatham, Ranaldo met the charismatic composer Glenn Branca, who created avant-garde pieces for electric guitar ensembles. Ranaldo was introduced to Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon, like-minded musicians who were also working with Brancas ensemble, and in 1981, after bringing in the first of a succession of drummers (Steve Shelley became their permanent timekeeper in 1985), they began playing out as Sonic Youth. Throughout the 80s, Sonic Youth worked hard to sustain themselves, recording and touring constantly. Their early years are documented in two books adapted from road journals written by Ranaldo, Road Movies and Jrnls80s. (Ranaldo would also edit Online Diaries, a volume of tour journals from the 1995 Lollapalooza Tour featuring contributions from Moore, Beck, Stephen Malkmus of Pavement, Courtney Love, and others. In 1987, he released his first solo album, From Here to Infinity, on SST Records; the original vinyl release featured locking grooves at the end of each track, except for one which impossible to play (it was a piece of circular artwork contributed by artist Savage Pencil). By the early 90s, after the seminal Daydream Nation earned widespread critical acclaim and helped Sonic Youth reach a larger audience than their early followers would have ever expected, the group came to be looked up to as elders in the fledgling alternative music scene, acting as mentors to dozens of younger bands, particularly Nirvana. In this role, Ranaldo helped guide budding artists as a producer, overseeing albums for Babes in Toyland, You Am I, Deity Guns, and others. Ranaldo also began an ongoing collaboration with jazz percussionist William Hooker. The two created dissonant music -- Hooker on drums, Ranaldo on modified guitars, synthesizers, and other electronics -- while taking turns reading and improvising poetry. These collaborations include 1998s heavily edited live album Clouds as well as 2005s Music for Stage and Screen, which featured excerpts of a score Ranaldo produced for Dania Saragovias film Jealousy, as well as music for plays by Gil Kofman and Michele Salimbeni. During his downtime from Sonic Youth, Ranaldo continued to collaborate with avant-garde luminaries throughout the 2000s, as on Christian Marclay: Graffiti Composition, which also featured adventurous guitarists Elliott Sharp and Vernon Reid, and Ranaldo also released solo forays that explored the possibilities of the guitar. When Sonic Youth moved from DGC Records to the independent Matador label to release 2009s The Eternal, Ranaldo also signed on as a solo artist. His debut album for the label, Between the Times and the Tides, featured familiar faces such as Alan Licht, Nels Cline, Steve Shelley, and Jim ORourke, and arrived in March 2012. The album was completed in the wake of his bandmates Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon deciding to divorce, which led to Sonic Youth taking an indefinite hiatus. (In a 2013 interview with the magazine Humo, Ranaldo said that the bands separation was likely to be permanent, adding, "I think you can put a cross behind Sonic Youth, same as you can put it behind the names Mike Kelley and Lou Reed. Let them all rest in peace.") For 2013s Last Night on Earth, Ranaldo assembled a new band, the Dust, which featured Licht and Shelley along with Tim Luntzel. While touring in Europe, Ranaldo and company recorded a set of acoustic sessions in Barcelona that later became Acoustic Dust, which was released in October 2014 to accompany another European tour. More touring preceded Electric Trim, a set of songs recorded in New York and Barcelona that featured the Dust, Spanish multi-instrumentalists Raúl Fernández Refree and Cayo Machancoses, Nels Cline, and Sharon Van Etten, and included lyrics by novelist Jonathan Lethem. The album arrived in 2017 via Mute, one of Sonic Youths former labels. A solo acoustic performance from a tour in support of the album was released in late 2018 as Electric Trim Live at Rough Trade East. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 26 Title: From Here → Infinity Released: 1987-11-04 Tracks: 13 Duration: 12:14 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Time Stands Still (02:40) 2 Destruction Site (01:17) 3 Ouroboron (00:46) 4 Slo Drone (01:10) 5 New Groove Loop (00:48) 6 Florida Flower (00:40) 7 Hard Left (00:18) 8 Fuzz/Locusts (01:04) 9 To Mary (00:40) 10 Lathe Speaks (01:39) 11 The Resolution (00:48) 12 Sav X (?) 13 The Open End (00:24) |
 | Album: 2 of 26 Title: Scriptures of the Golden Eternity Released: 1993 Tracks: 3 Duration: 48:16 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Scriptures of the Golden Eternity (22:42) 2 Naked & Alone at the Knitting Factory I (15:05) 3 Naked & Alone at the Knitting Factory II (10:28) |
| Scriptures of the Golden Eternity : Allmusic album Review : Recorded in 1988 and 1989, released as a limited-edition LP by the tiny indie Father Yod in 1993, and finally making it to CD in 1995, Scriptures of the Golden Eternity is a huge improvement over Ranaldos fragmentary solo debut, 1987s From Here to Infinity. These three lengthy (from ten and a half up to 23 minutes) tracks are all improvisations from Ranaldos periodic solo performances, recorded directly to tape sans overdubs and mixing. The first track (all three are untitled) is the longest one, and it opens with a charmingly nervous spoken bit by Ranaldo concerning an episode of the old Superman TV show hed seen as a kid where two pieces of recording tape were used as a clue to a mystery. That moves into a spacy, echoing miasma thats surprisingly well-shaped for this sort of extended improvisation. Tracks two and three are a bit noisier, but they never quite cross the line into the sort of aggressiveness that Ranaldos early mentors Rhys Chatham and Glenn Branca specialized in. Instead, this is an almost placid form of instrumental improvisation that Krautrock fans in particular might find inviting and familiar. | ||
 | Album: 3 of 26 Title: Broken Circle / Spiral Hill Released: 1994 Tracks: 5 Duration: 16:36 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Broken Circle (03:47) 2 Spiral Hill (03:55) 3 Bloomington, Indiana (early version) (02:33) 4 Midnight Headlights (03:46) 5 Brand New Love (02:33) |
 | Album: 4 of 26 Title: East Jesus: Some Recordings: 1981-1991 Released: 1995 Tracks: 10 Duration: 55:41 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 The Bridge (03:17) 2 Time Stands Still / Destruction Site / Oroboron / Slo Drone (10:11) 3 Some Distortion... (12:22) 4 Live #1 (Paradiso) (08:49) 5 New Groove Loop (02:52) 6 Some Hammering... (00:33) 7 Walker Groves (01:36) 8 Fuzz/Locusts / To Mary x2 / Lathe Speaks (07:22) 9 Deva, Spain Fragments (02:03) 10 The Resolution / Kings Ogg (06:32) |
 | Album: 5 of 26 Title: Envisioning Released: 1995-04-16 Tracks: 5 Duration: 56:56 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Matches (31:02) 2 Culture / Not Practice (15:42) 3 Other Pictures (00:40) 4 Spring (02:09) 5 Strike! (07:23) |
| Envisioning : Allmusic album Review : Recorded the night Kurt Cobains body was found, Envisioning presents a powerful, aggressive document of Sonic Youth guitarist Lee Ranaldos ongoing collaboration with drummer William Hooker. This album, a complete recording of their first set from that evening along with highlights from the second set, features Ranaldo and Hookers beat-influenced poetry backed by their noisy, avant-garde accompaniment. From time to time, the music gets a little bit repetitive and the poetry overwrought, caught up in the momentum of the event. The music, unfortunately, lacks the cohesive flow that it might have and, therefore, loses its possible impact. The two are best when their poetry is the most realist, their music the most out. | ||
 | Album: 6 of 26 Title: Amarillo Ramp (For Robert Smithson) Released: 1996 Tracks: 5 Duration: 52:26 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Amarillo Ramp (For Robert Smithson) (32:21) 2 Non-Site #3 (06:38) 3 Notebook (05:02) 4 Here (05:31) 5 Isolation (02:54) |
| Amarillo Ramp (For Robert Smithson) : Allmusic album Review : The Amarillo Ramp is an enormous land sculpture created in 1973 by the artist Robert Smithson just outside the small panhandle city of Amarillo, TX. Pictured on the front of Lee Ranaldos fifth solo album, the Amarillo Ramp is a circular elevation that slowly builds from ground level to a sort of peak. Its a lovely thing, as is Ranaldos half-hour instrumental of the same title, which builds on a similar structure, gradually moving from absolute stillness to a slowly-building climax, as Ranaldo loops short guitar phrases and layers them atop one another. Bearing a surprising resemblance to Philip Glass earliest works (although the actual recording process is much closer to Robert Fripps Frippertronics methods), "Amarillo Ramp" is one of Ranaldos most impressive achievements. The other four pieces sound rather like leftovers in comparison, but theyre not without merit. "Non-Site #3" is a fractious jam with fellow Sonic Youth folks Thurston Moore and Steve Shelley, while the acoustic instrumental "Here" sounds very much like Ranaldos acknowledged hero John Fahey. The two vocal pieces, "Notebook" and a faithful but unilluminating cover of John Lennons "Isolation," are less essential, but, overall, this is a terrific and adventurous album for experimental rock fans. | ||
 | Album: 7 of 26 Title: Mmmr Released: 1997 Tracks: 3 Duration: 41:53 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Mazzacane Connors / Montera (11:11) 2 Mazzacane Connors / Montera / Moore (10:07) 3 Mazzacane Connors / Montera / Moore / Ranaldo (20:35) |
| Mmmr : Allmusic album Review : Recorded shortly after the construction of Sonic Youths Echo Canyon Studio in lower Manhattan, MMMR features avant-garde guitarists Loren Mazzacane Connors and Jean-Marc Montera alongside Sonic Youth guitarists (and confessed Connors fans) Lee Ranaldo and Thurston Moore. The disc features three untitled pieces, each with a slightly varied lineup (the first featuring just Connors and Montera, the second adding Moore to the lineup, the third -- and longest -- adding Ranaldo as well). Stylistically, the disc is fairly typical free guitar improv (indeed, thats the only instrument featured), with more emphasis on tone and texture than linear melody or rhythmic development. The first track, featuring just the duo, is -- somewhat obviously -- the most minimal of the three. The addition of Moore and Ranaldo on the succeeding tracks is a nicely logical one, letting the listeners ear subtly grok each of the instrumental voices. The second and third tracks are easily the best, with subtly rhythmic industrial clangs creating an idiosyncratic framework for feedback explorations. | ||
 | Album: 8 of 26 Title: Dirty Windows Released: 1999-04 Tracks: 10 Duration: 46:37 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 How Much Needs Crushing? (02:53) 2 Opening (feat. Michael Morley) (01:50) 3 Part 1: Skies / Last Night / Second Sight / Dirty Windows (feat. Thurston Moore) (12:50) 4 Part 2: The End of Life in America (feat. Michael Morley, Thurston Moore) (04:50) 5 En Route / Midnight Headlights (03:48) 6 Part 3: Smoke Ring / The Leap of Faith (feat. Michael Morley) (07:32) 7 Part 3: To Mary (00:30) 8 Part 4: A Bit of Memory / Train Wreck / X9 (00:42) 9 Part 4: Notes (03:27) 10 Part 4: Bloomington, Indiana: Autumn (08:15) |
| Dirty Windows : Allmusic album Review : Although Lee Ranaldo is an underrated singer and songwriter -- songs like "Mote" and "Erics Trip" are among Sonic Youths best work -- his solo records have never really explored this side of his musical personality. The limited-edition 1998 release Dirty Windows is his least song-oriented project yet, being a collection of pieces recorded between 1991 and 1997, featuring Ranaldo reading poetry over unobtrusive musical backgrounds. Ranaldos poetry is no worse than that of any middle-aged artist heavily influenced by the beat generation writers, but, unfortunately, its not much better either. Ranaldo flits between scenes of lower Manhattan and that other rock & roll favorite, life on the tour bus, but while his images are often striking, they dont often add up to much. The music, which features guest appearances by Epic Soundtracks of Swell Maps and Michael Morley of the Dead C, as well as Ranaldos Sonic Youth compatriots, is far more interesting, alternating languid, almost pretty soundscapes with brief passages that could shatter glass from a hundred yards. The packaging, including a 45-page booklet of poetry and photos, is simply beautiful. | ||
 | Album: 9 of 26 Title: New York - Ystad Released: 2000 Tracks: 2 Duration: 1:02:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Without Kim I (44:26) 2 Without Kim II (17:34) |
 | Album: 10 of 26 Title: Fuck Shit Up Released: 2000 Tracks: 2 Duration: 1:11:33 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Paix, Amour (1:02:30) 2 Pour Diane Allaire (09:03) |
 | Album: 11 of 26 Title: New Life After Fire (For Tom Thomson) Released: 2003 Tracks: 5 Duration: 39:48 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Fire 1 (06:49) 2 Fire 2 (04:04) 3 Fire 3 (08:43) 4 Fire 4 (09:53) 5 Fire 5 (10:19) |
 | Album: 12 of 26 Title: North Six Released: 2004-06-15 Tracks: 1 Duration: 18:58 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 [untitled] (18:58) |
 | Album: 13 of 26 Title: 30th December 2004 Released: 2005 Tracks: 1 Duration: 53:45 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 [Untitled] (53:45) |
 | Album: 14 of 26 Title: The Celestial Answer Released: 2005 Tracks: 5 Duration: 1:04:38 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Celestial 2/1 (18:44) 2 Celestial 1/1&2 (16:10) 3 Celestial 2/2 (07:11) 4 Celestial 3/1 (16:39) 5 Celestial 4/1 (05:52) |
 | Album: 15 of 26 Title: Music for Stage and Screen Released: 2005-05-17 Tracks: 19 Duration: 00:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Voice of the President (?) 2 Kirillov and the Horsemen (?) 3 The Devil’s Knife (?) 4 The Fire (?) 5 Sciatov Assassins (?) 6 Secret Meeting (?) 7 Spider (?) 8 Noisy Plateau (?) 9 The End of It (?) 10 Apocalypse (?) 11 Kirillovis Suicide (?) 12 Lill Fuse Myself With the Grass (?) 13 Gilles de Rais (Barbablu) (?) 14 Mariais Delerium (?) 15 Jealousy End Credits (?) 16 Evolution of Sirens (?) 17 Dance of the Coats (?) 18 War (?) 19 The Black Light (?) |
| Music for Stage and Screen : Allmusic album Review : Call it an honest title, as this album presents pieces and cues Lee Ranaldo produced for a film by Dania Saragovia (Jealousy), and three plays by Michele Salimbeni (Demons, Bluebeard), and Gil Kofman (American Magic). Sonic Youths guitarist worked on all these projects at around the same time, using as source material improvised studio sessions between him, guitarist Alan Licht, turntable legend Christian Marclay, experimental percussionist Günter Müller, and drummer William Hooker. Ranaldo edited, looped and recomposed these improvisations, often using the same bits more than once -- the track titled "The Fire" is identified as appearing in three of the four projects. As a result, Music for Stage and Screen displays much more homogeneity than one would normally expect from such an album. Sadly, several of the 19 pieces featured here are simply too short to be relevant. They were created as incidental music and, once put together, they still sound like incidental music. The group seems to work very well as an improvising unit, but the short edits get in the way of the listening pleasure. There are some fine moments, like the soft serenity of "Dance of the Coats," the surprise appearance of a string section in "Secret Meeting," and the intensity of "Sciatov Assassins." Fans of Ranaldo who enjoyed "Text of Light," his live project of improvised soundtracks for Stan Brakhage films, will find themselves on relatively secure territory. Let us hope that Ranaldo eventually releases larger, unprocessed chunks of these sessions. It would probably be much more interesting than the bits and pieces collected here. | ||
 | Album: 16 of 26 Title: Ambient Loop for Vancouver Released: 2006 Tracks: 1 Duration: 53:42 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Ambient Loop for Vancouver (53:42) |
 | Album: 17 of 26 Title: Four Guitars Live Released: 2006-02-28 Tracks: 1 Duration: 41:50 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Untitled (41:50) |
 | Album: 18 of 26 Title: Melbourne Direct Released: 2006-11 Tracks: 4 Duration: 1:22:58 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 [untitled] (22:17) 2 [untitled] (20:53) 1 [untitled] (19:06) 2 [untitled] (20:42) |
 | Album: 19 of 26 Title: Maelstrom From Drift Released: 2008-05-28 Tracks: 9 Duration: 43:04 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Glacial Trio (studio excerpt) (04:08) 2 Afternoon Saints (05:58) 3 Cal Arts Tuesday Nite Session (06:33) 4 Semen Injection (04:27) 5 Navel Milk Prison (04:16) 6 Spkr Test (Sudden Infant) (03:17) 7 Trighplane (05:30) 8 The Homeless Hairdresser (03:55) 9 Maelstrom From Drift (05:00) |
 | Album: 20 of 26 Title: Bloomington, Indiana... Autumn Released: 2010-04-20 Tracks: 2 Duration: 35:05 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Bloomington, Indiana (17:56) 2 Autumn (17:09) |
 | Album: 21 of 26 Title: Between the Times and the Tides Released: 2012-03-20 Tracks: 10 Duration: 47:38 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Waiting on a Dream (06:14) 2 Off the Wall (03:04) 3 Xtina as I Knew Her (07:04) 4 Angles (03:17) 5 Hammer Blows (04:04) 6 Fire Island (Phases) (06:07) 7 Lost (03:59) 8 Shouts (04:54) 9 Stranded (04:20) 10 Tomorrow Never Comes (04:30) |
| Between the Times and the Tides : Allmusic album Review : With the dreamy, brooding quality to songs like "Mote," "Hey Joni," and "Wish Fulfillment," Lee Ranaldo could be seen as the George Harrison of Sonic Youth, offering a more lyrical contrast to the blunter and more abstract approaches of Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon. On his solo album Between the Times and the Tides, he expands on those qualities in his music and reveals new ones, inviting friends including Alan Licht, Steve Shelley, Jim ORourke, and Nels Cline along to help. Some of these songs could have been fine additions to a Sonic Youth album, particularly "Xtina as I Knew Her" which, with its expansive swath and dark, dissonant solos swirling around the plainspoken clarity of his vocals, comes the closest to Ranaldos work with the band. Meanwhile, his unabashed romanticism continues with "Stranded," where he sighs over pedal steel, "I long for your lips" -- something that Kim Gordon or Thurston Moore probably wouldnt pull off or even attempt. Like any good solo album, this one shows off Ranaldos different aspects, but he arguably goes even farther afield of his prescribed role in Sonic Youth than his bandmates do in many of their extracurricular projects. Between the Times and the Tides displays a strong and surprising classic rock streak: "Waiting on a Dream" begins the album with a darkly trippy raga complete with backward guitars and tablas that evokes the Stones "Paint it Black," while "Tomorrow Never Comes" tumbling rhythm and eloquent solos feel akin to the Beatles "Tomorrow Never Knows." Ranaldo gets downright hippie-ish, in a good way, on the psychedelic "Angles" and "Shouts," which pairs violent words with a hypnotic melody and a spoken word description of a riot that feels like 60s, 90s, and 2010s protests layered atop each other. Between the Times and the Tides also reveals that he can write a straightforward pop song just as well, if not better, than songwriters who arent from his avant/experimental background. "Off the Wall" is one such gorgeous standout, with carefully crafted lyrics that dont detract from its endearing melody; "Lost" is another, and another example of the poetic empathy that sets his songwriting apart. Ranaldo ventures even farther on the folksy "Hammer Blows" and "Fire Island (Phases)" a suite of psych-rock, country-rock, and swooning soft rock miniatures, and sounds just as comfortable on both tracks as he does on the albums more expected territory. Though a question mark hung over Sonic Youths future at the the time of its release, Between the Times and the Tides cements Ranaldos role as a dreamer and poet who can remain true to himself and reveal new things at the same time. | ||
 | Album: 22 of 26 Title: Electric Trim Released: 2017-09-15 Tracks: 9 Duration: 04:27 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Moroccan Mountains (?) 2 Uncle Skeleton (?) 3 Lets Start Again (?) 4 Last Looks (?) 5 Circular (Right as Rain) (04:27) 6 Electric Trim (?) 7 Purloined (?) 8 Thrown Over the Wall (?) 9 New Thing (?) |
| Electric Trim : Allmusic album Review : With Electric Trim, Lee Ranaldo continues to expand on the mystical feeling of his post-Sonic Youth work in compelling and very personal ways. This time, he combines the serene contemplation of Last Night on Earth with the energy that emanated from the live album Acoustic Dust. Indeed, Ranaldo recorded Electric Trim in New York and Barcelona with Spanish multi-instrumentalist Raul "Refree" Fernandez, whom hed met while making the latter album. With a mix of new and veteran collaborators supporting him, Ranaldo delivers truly unexpected combinations of sound and mood that are more adventurous than the work of many of his peers -- or younger artists, for that matter. The sweeping opener "Moroccan Mountains" is too nimble to be called an epic; as it moves from contemplation to furious intensity, its melody follows the wind and its percussion feels freer than a steady beat would. The title track is even more freewheeling, incorporating synths and trumpet in its cosmic wandering. Like Between the Time and Tides and Last Night on Earth, Electric Trim bears a strong classic rock influence, but the immediacy of the performances -- and Ranaldos emotions -- keeps it from feeling musty. He captures the spirit of psychedelia, rather than merely sounding trippy, in the virtuosic moments and shifting scenes within songs like "Purloined," an unlikely but winning mix of allusions to Wings and Edgar Allan Poe, and "New Thing," which layers its John Lennon homages in ways that transcend pastiche. Despite these traditional-seeming influences, starting anew is one of Electric Trims major themes. Theres a literary continuity to the albums moods and words that may be due to Ranaldos collaboration with novelist Jonathan Lethem, but again, the results are far from stuffy or studied on "Lets Start Again," a fusion of country rock and electro that recalls both sides of Neil Youngs music, or "Last Looks," a dusky duet with Sharon Van Etten that acknowledges the need to say goodbye to the past in order to say hello to the present. When artists reach a certain point in their careers, they can maintain the status quo or they can challenge themselves; Ranaldo chooses the latter on Electric Trim, imbuing his poetic cool with earnest, quixotic charm that makes this some of his most wonderfully unpredictable music yet. | ||
 | Album: 23 of 26 Title: In Doubt, Shadow Him! Released: 2018-07-06 Tracks: 6 Duration: 44:53 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Racing Thoughts (04:34) 2 On the Cusp (08:30) 3 Someone Drifted Out Over the Edge (08:46) 4 Musee de Ville de Paris (06:53) 5 Weapons (08:07) 6 Pure (Take Me First) (08:03) |
 | Album: 24 of 26 Title: Trouble And Desire Released: 2018-10-26 Tracks: 14 Duration: 07:40 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Octopus 1 (?) 2 The Magic Fruit Of Strangeness (?) 3 Octopus 2 (?) 4 Μελανιά (?) 5 Octopus 3 (01:10) 6 Trouble And Desire (03:03) 7 Octopus 4 (?) 8 Mirroir (?) 9 Octopus 5 (?) 10 Πετώ (?) 11 The Callas - Octopus 6 (00:45) 12 Acid Books (02:40) 13 Octopus 7 (?) 14 Γλυκιά Μου Όμορφη (?) |
 | Album: 25 of 26 Title: Electric Trim Live at Rough Trade East Released: 2018-12-14 Tracks: 16 Duration: 53:40 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Moroccan Mountains (?) 2 Lets Start Again (?) 3 Electric Trim (?) 4 Circular (Right as Rain) (?) 5 Uncle Skeleton (?) 6 Thrown Over the Wall (?) 7 New Thing (?) 1 Moroccan Mountains (10:39) 2 Let’s Start Again (04:36) 3 Circular (Right as Rain) (04:18) 4 Electric Trim (06:46) 5 Uncle Skeleton (05:01) 6 Thrown Over the Wall (06:10) 7 Last Looks (05:56) 8 Off the Wall (03:18) 9 New Thing (06:53) |
 | Album: 26 of 26 Title: Lee Ranaldo / Jim Jarmusch / Marc Urselli / Balázs Pándi Released: 2019-05-17 Tracks: 5 Duration: 52:39 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Andvari (08:54) 2 Bergelmir (07:26) 3 Groa (19:29) 4 Gulltoppr (11:46) 5 Haar (05:00) |